Remembering Values

Description

When you may be tempted to do something that you know is wrong, then before
you reach the point of temptation, remind yourself of what is right and good.

One way of doing this is to write down the things that you believe you should
do and not do. Another is to read a pre-existing set of
values, particularly if you
subscribe to this list.

Example

A Christian reads the
Ten Commandments
before going out to a football match, where there is temptation to join in
rowdy affray.

Before a man goes out on a new date he writes down a list of how a
man should behave with a woman, include being respectful, opening doors, being
clean and so on.

An interviewer cannily first asks the interviewee 'Would you
say you are an honest person?'.

Discussion

Through recency
effect, people remember things that have happened more recently as these are
now more
available than alternative thoughts. By thinking about values, you bring
them to the surface, so when you later need to comply with them, they have a
greater effect on your conscience.

In research, it has been found that when people are put in a situation of
temptation, such being able to cheating in a test without being caught (or so
they think), that getting them to read a list of values beforehand significantly
reduced the cheating.